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India became Armenia’s top defence supplier under Nikol Pashinyan 1.0. Now invest in peace

India’s growing footprint in Armenia coincided with a period of profound geopolitical transformation in the South Caucasus. But the region is no longer defined by the Russia-centric order.

For most Indians, Armenia was once a distant country known through its ancient Christian heritage and a tragic history of genocide and displacement. Yet, over the last few years, Armenia has been discussed steadily in India’s strategic circles. Reason: New Delhi has emerged as Yerevan’s largest defence supplier in recent years, providing everything from Pinaka multi-barrel rocket launchers and Akash air defence systems to radars and anti-tank weaponry. Yerevan, in turn, became the first destination for successful exports of Indian weapon platforms, not just sub-systems — a feat for India’s defence-export aspirations.

India’s growing footprint in Armenia, however, coincided with a period of profound geopolitical transformation in the South Caucasus. The region is no longer defined or controlled by the familiar Russia-centric order that prevailed after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Instead, a new strategic calculus has been emerging — one shaped by the decline of Russian influence, the rise of Turkey, greater European engagement, and burgeoning American investments.

Much of the above owes to the remarkable political experiment unfolding under Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who has served since 2018. He returned to power days ago with a mandate yearning for geopolitical change. Pashinyan defeated two pro-Russia parties by a comfortable margin but fell short of the mandate required for a constitutional amendment to solidify the peace process with Azerbaijan.

His latest electoral victory, despite military defeat to Azerbaijan, upended the thumb rule of politics and remains crucial not merely for Armenia, but for the future of the Caucasus, and for countries such as India that have invested strategically in the region.

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Unusual political narrative

A journalist by profession, Nikol Pashinyan worked as editor of the Armenian newspaper Haykakan Zhamanak and became a prominent opposition figure in his youth. In 2009, he was imprisoned for his role in protests that followed disputed elections and was sentenced to seven years in prison. His political fortunes, however, continued to rise, and he was elected to parliament for the first time in 2012 and again in 2017.

The defining moment came in 2018 during Armenia’s “Velvet Revolution”, when pro-democracy mass protests against entrenched political elites swept him into power. On 8 May 2018, backed by a popular movement demanding political change, Pashinyan was elected the Prime Minister of Armenia.

Since then, he has become one of the most closely watched leaders in the former........

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